Trinidad and Tobago supports Ghana’s candidacy for Commonwealth Gen. Sec.

Trinidad and Tobago has pledged its support to Ghana’s candidacy for the General Secretaryship of the Commonwealth.

The decision to support Ghana was announced by the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, Dr Keith Christopher Rowley, when he paid a courtesy call on President Nana Addo Dankwa Addo at the Jubilee House in Accra last Friday.

The call formed part of his visit to the country on the invitation of the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, as a special guest to the 25th anniversary celebration of his ascension to the Golden Stool.

Dr Rowley said the choice to support Ms Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, Ghana’s representative for the position, formed part of a number of initiative put in place by Trinidad and Tobago to strengthen its relationship with Ghana.

He said, “I just want to give you the assurance that Trinidad and Tobago remains a leader in CARICOM and so we’ve given you the commitment that we will support fully the candidacy of your foreign minister.”

The Prime Minister explained that even though he did not attend the last CARICOM meeting and did not intend to attend this year’s one as well, he would be travelling to Samoa to campaign for Ghana’s candidacy.

“I did not intend to go to the ones coming up in Samoa but because of our commitment to Ghana, to get your candidate elected as Secretary General, I intended to go to campaign for CARICOM in support of Ghana’s candidacy,” he emphasised.

Ghana’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Ms Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, is one of the individuals contesting for the position of the Secretary General of the Commonwealth.

Dr Rowley also touched on the need for Africans to establish one international body with one voice to press home the demand for reparation from Western Nations for their role in the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade.

President Akufo-Addo expressed his profound gratitude to President Rowley for the gesture and noted that Ghana would rely on Trinidad and Tobago to achieve that milestone.

“We know that the voice of Trinidad in the Caribbean goes very far so it’s an important statement for us that you have made here today and the fact that as a result of that you have decided to go to Samoa, which is a long way away for all of us and is also something very heart warming and we thank you very much for it,” he stressed.

Touching on the issue of reparation, President Akufo-Addo said the initiative taken by Trinidad and Tobago resonated deeply with that of Ghana in particular and the African Union as a body.

President Akufo-Addo said the AU had not created a cross continental, intercontinental international to raising the issues.

“The people in Addis Ababa, the AU will be very happy to hear this initiative and especially because of the decisions that will be taken this last year or two along the same lines, it is time the Caribbean and those of us on this side of the Atlantic, on the continent come together on this matter, because it’s a common fight and it is a common issue,” he said.

President Akufo-Addo said even though the demand for reparations and the “noise surrounding it” had been growing, the time had come for a unified voice in that direction.

BY CLIFF EKUFUL